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Fwd: RE: RE: Nabokov & a color question
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----- Forwarded message from Andrew.Brown@bbdodetroit.com -----
Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 10:32:06 -0400
From: "Brown, Andrew" <Andrew.Brown@bbdodetroit.com>
Reply-To: "Brown, Andrew" <Andrew.Brown@bbdodetroit.com>
Subject: RE: RE: Nabokov & a color question
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
NABOKOVList,
I referred Mr. Powelstock's comment about concentrated wine to my friend, the
wine expert and international bon vivant David Celmer. He has gone beyond the
wine query to consider the color question at large. His credentials for the
color question comes from having spent several years around the Mediterranean,
from Sicily, Crete, Southern Italy around to the North African side,
The key reaction of winemaking is alcoholic fermentation, the conversion of
sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide by yeast. The maximum amount of alcohol
attained through alcoholic fermentation is about 15% because the yeast cells
are killed by high alcohol concentration. The maximum alcohol content can be
determined by multiplying 0.55 times the percent sugar initially present in the
grape juice before fermentation. For example, if 24% sugar is initially present,
about 13% (0.55 x 24) alcohol will be realized. Most still wines (i.e., table
wines) contain 12 to 14% alcohol.
----
Aromatised wine
It is made of grapes or from grape juice (and their mix) to which water is added
(maximum 15 %). They are aromatised by natural aromatic substances or by
admissible aromatic extracts, aromatic herbs or spices. It is also possible to
use admissible flavour additives. Sucrose, grape juice or condensed grape juice
are used as sweeteners. Natural spirit is used for alcoholising, in such a way
that the actual content of alcohol in the final product would be between the
minimum of 14.5 % and maximum of 22 % of the volume.
So, maybe it's possible that a 22% wine could be achieved ... and then it
MIGHT be cut a bit with water. Certainly plausible.
As for coloration, I doubt that "blue" would be at the end: the sky is far too
prominent an event, not to mention the larger seas and oceans, feathers of
birds, perhaps eye color, salt-water fish, certain plants ...
As for the "red" of the sea, I'm far more inclined to believe that it's the
natural effect of oceans and salt water, ie., the Mediterranean: there's a
species of plankton or microbe or something which, somewhat regularly, occurs:
the sea turns quite red, fishing becomes abominable, there's a slight smell: I
saw it while living on the Pacific Ocean near Acapulco in '82: the Mexicans have
an expression for it which translates into "The ocean is bleeding" ie., having
its menstrual period. It lasts a week or ten days, then fades.
d.
> ----------
> From: Vladimir Nabokov Forum on behalf of Donald B. Johnson
> Reply To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
> Sent: Sunday, May 8, 2005 9:55 AM
> To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
> Subject: Fwd: RE: Nabokov & a color question
>
> If I recall correctly, the Greeks used a form of highly concentrated wine,
> which was mixed with water before drinking. Thus it might indeed have been
> very, very dark.
> David
> (Powelstock)
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
> > [mailto:NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU] On Behalf Of Donald B. Johnson
> > Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2005 9:29 PM
> > To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
> > Subject: Fwd: Nabokov & a color question
> >
> > Please forgive this question re Homer. Where else should I have asked?
> >
> > Jansy wrote: ". . . The homeric "purpureum" might not
> > necessarily refer to a "wine-red sea" but to the absence of a
> > word for blue. . ."
> >
> > Was there no word for blue when Homer wrote? I have heard
> > that blue is the last color to be named in every language,
> > but have heard no definite reason why this is so. What about
> > Athena's glaucous eyes, which Andrew Lang translated as gray
> > eyes and which somebody interpreted, in a program about
> > Ulysses, as eyes of the most brilliant blue that television
> > could produce?
> > Was the sea wine-red because there was no word for blue?
> > (I've not seen the Mediterranean, but I've seen red wine and>
> > it's hard to imagine any sea that color or any shade of
> > "wine-dark". Maybe unfermented juice of purple or black
> > grapes? Or maybe on rare occasions, as during an unusual
> > sunset? Or maybe I don't party often enough.)
> >
> > Mary Krimmel
> >
> > ----- End forwarded message -----
> >
>
> ----- End forwarded message -----
>
>
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